Silicone Breast Implant Slipped into a New Pocket?

Hi, I had cohesive gel silicone implants 4 years ago & all was well until I noticed when I lift my right arm up a lump appears under the implant about the size of a golf ball.

I went to see a specialist who said it looks like the implant has slipped into a new pocket as she could push it back up. The lump is soft & does seem like it is the implant filling a new space. She said it could be fixed or I could leave it for now, but now hurts. I am now trying for a baby and am worried about leaving it. Suggestions?

Doctor Answers 3

Malposition or Rupture of Silicone Gel Implants

September 18th, 2009

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Under normal conditions, a breast implant does not fall lower than the bottom of the breast’s attachment to the chest or what we call the inframammary fold. There are times however when a woman’s breast is a little ptotic or droopy and we will intentionally position the implant lower in the chest as this can provide a little extra lift. Other times the implant can fall well beyond the fold and create a condition called “bottoming out.”

It sounds as if your implant has fallen beneath the fold. This can be repaired but generally requires surgery. Your surgeon would perform this from inside the breast by temporarily removing the implant and repairing the opening to reconstruct the inframammary fold. The implant is then immediately replaced and the incisions are closed. One question is have you had a MRI examination? It is generally recommended that this be performed periodically for women who have silicone gel implants to document the integrity of the implant. You would want to be assured that the implants are not ruptured.

A hard to answer without seeing you

September 1st, 2009

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Hello,

Without seeing you, it is hard to visualize what you have going on. Are your implants quite large? It is funny to see cohesive gel implants lead to lumps unless you have little in the way of tissue covering them or there is a little hole in that coverage such as in the muscle. Perhaps seek out another opinion there in the UK to see if the second doctor agrees with the first.

It is better to take care of it

June 29th, 2009

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Your breast may change during pregnancy and after and it may effect your symptoms. It may be better to correct it before pregnancy. Just so you know, another school of thought may say to leave it alone until after pregnancy because breast may change and need some further revisions. Get a couple of opinions!

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